Bloomingdale’s Eggnog Ad Is Everything Wrong With The Way We Approach Sex

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“In reflection of recent feedback, the copy we used in our recent catalog was inappropriate and in poor taste,” a brand representative told Tech Insider. “Bloomingdale’s sincerely apologizes for this error in judgment.”

It shouldn’t have taken “recent feedback” (read: a Twitter firestorm) to inject better taste into the copywriters’ brains.

The Bill Cosby saga should have been enough, with spiked drinks sitting center stage in dozens of the 50 sexual abuse or assault complaints against him.

Lady Gaga’s powerful new video, which shows the fictionalized account of two women being raped after their drinks were spiked, should have been enough.

Countless brave essays, like this one, that reveal the pain of being drugged and raped should have been enough.

In Bloomingdale’s defense, eggnog is usually “spiked” with rum or scotch, not Rohypnol. So you can imagine the brainchild behind the ad saying, “With rum! I meant with rum, people!”

And maybe he or she did.

It’s still a problem. Because it sets up a dynamic that we really, really, really need to move past: that men are sex-crazed lechers, angling at every turn to wear down an unsuspecting woman, even if it means diluting her senses. (“Baby It’s Cold Outside,” anyone?)

It leaves no room for men to feel a whole range of emotions about sex, from “not in the mood” to “bring it on.”